BRITISH airlines have suffered serious scares caused by fumes or potentially toxic air on board at a rate of five flights a week, new figures show.

The Civil Aviation Authority, which regulates UK airlines, received 254 reports of problems in the cabin or cockpit in the latest 12-month period for which figures are available.

The dossier, seen by the Sunday Express, includes emergency landings, distress calls and incidents when pilots and cabin crew have been forced to wear oxygen masks.

Passengers have usually been unaware their flights have been in peril.

The latest data, which also includes electrical problems, comes as plane manufacturer Boeing agreed a payout to former flight attendant Terry Williams for her exposure to contaminated air.

The undisclosed sum and the new CAA dossier once again raise questions about cabin air, though the Department for Transport denies there is a serious problem.

On August 6 last year, pilots of an Airbus 319 issued an emergency call to traffic controllers as they approached Heathrow, and donned oxygen masks due to a “strong smell of oil on the flight deck and cabin on the final approach”. The CAA report stated: “Engine concluded as the source of the smell in the cabin”.

Passengers have usually been unaware their flights have been in peril

On June 27 this year, a Brazilian-made Embraer 190 jet also issued a distress call after crew donned masks due to smoke and a “strong sulphur smell” on the flight deck after take-off from Southampton.

The Air Accidents Investigation Branch has classified the incident as “serious” and is investigating.

The CAA also reveals how flights have been diverted to airports for emergency landings after crew have fallen ill.

Cabin air on most aircraft is supplied unfiltered through the outside engine system. It can be contaminated by an oil leak, leading to pungent smells often said to be similar to dirty socks, that can cause headaches and nausea.

Crew-members have frequently passed out and even suffered memory loss, but because almost every passenger aircraft is affected, any admission that design faults were to blame would bring immense consequences for the industry.

Experts believe the reported incidents are merely the tip of the iceberg and they hope the payment to Miss Williams will prove to be a landmark.

The mother-of-two said she suffered memory loss and speech and vision impairment after toxic air leaked into the cabin of an American Airlines plane in April 2007.

Captain John Hoyte, chairman of the Aerotoxic Association, said: “The numbers of people who have suffered like her are frightening and we only seem to find out about it by accident. This needs to be taken much more seriously.”

A report from the Department for Transport earlier this year concluded that breathing air on planes was safe.

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